North American Class 8 net orders improved month-over-month but declined year-over-year in May, according to preliminary reports from FTR Intel and ACT Research.
FTR registered a 40% increase from April, with orders for 12,000 units. But that was well below the seven-year May average of 18,319 orders and represented the lowest May order total since 2020, FTR added.
Through May, orders for the last 12 months totaled 260,355 units.
The improvement versus April might result from at least a temporary lowering of tariffs on many countries versus the steep levels announced in early April, especially the lowering of tariffs on Chinese goods from 145% to 30%. Even with the month-over-month improvement, the year-over-year decline was steep.
Also, net orders in 2025 were down 32% year-over-year through May, and retail truck sales in 2025 were down 11% year-over-year through April, FTR reported.
“Tariff volatility and uncertainty over the economy and the truck freight market continue to disrupt the North American Class 8 truck and tractor market,” Dan Moyer, FTR senior analyst for commercial vehicles, said in a news release. “Legal challenges surrounding emergency tariffs (reciprocal tariffs and those related to fentanyl) and the potential introduction of Section 232 tariffs on Classes 4-8 trucks and their components adds further uncertainty to the market environment.
“Coupled with the anticipated revisions to the EPA 2027 NOx standards, these factors have led many fleets to postpone equipment investment decisions.”
‘Liberation Day’ uncertainty
North America Class 8 net orders of 13,200 units improved month-over-month but declined 44% year-over-year, according to ACT’s preliminary estimate.
“Given the uncertainty around ‘Liberation Day’ in April’s data that sent order activity across the board to 59-month lows, it’s little surprise preliminary order activity for May showed month-over-month improvement, with total NA Classes 5-8 net orders expected at 26,400 units when released mid-month,” said Carter Vieth, ACT research analyst. “Though, it’s worth highlighting two things: 1) Continued trade uncertainty will slow order activity, and 2) We have now entered the weakest seasonal period for orders, so improvement, if any, likely won’t reveal itself until the opening of 2026 order boards in Q3 of this year.”
Regarding medium-duty truck orders, he added, “Preliminary May NA Classes 5-7 orders fell 32% year-over-year to 13,200 units, the second weakest net order tally since the pandemic, only surpassed by April’s weak showing.
“Seasonally adjusted, Classes 5-7 orders rose 8.5% month-over-month to 14,300 units, a 171,000 SAAR.”